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Starve Acre

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Starve Acre

By: Andrew Michael Hurley
Narrated by: Richard Burnip
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About this listen


'An impeccable work of folk horror' Irish Times

The worst thing possible has happened. Richard and Juliette Willoughby's son, Ewan, has died suddenly at the age of five. Convinced that the boy still lives on in some form, and desparate to make contact, Juliette seeks the help of the Beacons, a seemingly benevolent group of occultists. Whereas Ricahrd, an art historian, tries to blot out the pain of his grief by turning his attention to the field opposite their house, Starve Acre. Patiently he digs in the barren soil looking for the roots of a legendary oak tree but unearths something which ought to have remained buried.

'I will confidently predict that no reader will guess where it's heading . . . Hurley's ability to create a wold that's like ours in many ways and really not in many others is again on full display' The Times

©2019 Andrew Michael Hurley (P)2019 Hodder & Stoughton Limited Fantasy Genre Fiction Horror Literary Fiction Scary

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Not quite as good as his two previous books but still an excellent listen. The shorter length means less time for character development. It still manages the same sense of dread and lingering doom as previous Hurley books through his superb writing. I also feel that Burnip is the perfect narrator for these books he’s on fine form yet again here. Can’t wait for the next one

Another great book from Andrew Michael Hurley

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This book threatened to be a good story all the way through, but it never did and then it ended really suddenly. Also lots on inconsistencies and confusions. I was convinced I was in the early 1960s until with old Austin cars until someone pulled out 50p piece! Really disappointing.

Threatened to be a book book

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This novel kept me guessing until the end. The characters were beautifully drawn. Just wonderful.

Fantastic and Original

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In recent months I've listened to Andrew Michael Hurley books in order, and I think Starve Acre is his best yet. His descriptive passages are second to none, you really get a feeling for people and place, there is a real sense of creeping dread. I thoroughly enjoyed this twisted little tale and can't wait to move onto his next book.

Cracking little folk horror

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Quite the tale. Loved both of Hurley’s other books and this is as good or better. Powerful scene setting, slowly builds towards its denouement that is nuanced.

I understand this is the last of his folk horror trilogy, look forward to the urban setting of his next!

Malevolent

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Stories about events with no solving always get my attention.. What an interesting book, but i felt it ended on a cliff hanger.. Would love to know more about the mediums and such

Modern gothic

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Andrew Michael Hurley creates the essential true-life base to power this slow-burn gothic story. Richard and Juliette have moved to the country to give their young son Ewan an idyllic childhood steeped in birdsong, close to woods, trees and earth. But we learn very early on that Ewan is dead and Juliette is manic with giref,

In flashbacks we see how 5 year-old Ewan's disturbed behaviour (vicious acts which he says 'Jack Grey'told him to do) resulted in the family being ostracised in the little community, Well-meaning but intolerable family members try to help - but Juliette's condition declines, Richard is excavating their barren field (the 'Starve Acre') where once had been a hanging tree where 3 boys has been hanged for crimes they committed at 'Jack Grey's' bidding; the hare skeleton which Richard finds... I can't spoil that part of the plot; Juliette slips further and further into the mad, untouchable isolation of grief.

Hurley is brilliant at communicating the beauty of nature: the sky is 'star-rich'; nature unfurls in all its green lustre in the spring; sounds and colours are subtle and exact. Hurley manages to make the menace grow naturally from the beauty, so that its hold over the family doesn't seem wholly unnatural or frightening. This novel, Hurley's 3rd, is less than half the length of his first The Loney (which is reviewed along with his Devil's Day on my Listener Page) and the ending sentence is a complete surprise: shocking, disturbing but somehow credible - certainly not horror as it has been billed. It's too human, too natural for that. The much shorter length makes the whole a little less satisfying than his other longer novels.

The narration helps to keep the story rooted in real life too with the Scottish and country accents which make real people we can believe in even when events are so strange..

an unsettling tale

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I cannot say I enjoyed this book. The story is grim and bleak and I came away feeling grim and bleak. Beautifully written, the author evokes the wild and remote countryside on the edge of the Yorkshire Moors but there is no joy whatsoever in this book. Just anxiety and grief and finally some horror. It may have worked better if you read this as a novel, as it would not immerse you in this cold grey wotld quite as much as when you are listening to it, but I really cannot recommend it as an audible book.

A pretty grim affair

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Just stunningly written and such a powerful story. Propelled with a horrible inevitability. Didn't want it to end.

Incredible

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Having just seen the film version of Starve Acre I was drawn to the book. The film has changed the plot so it was great to listen to the original source. well told, and lots of imagery and psychology of both grief and folk lore to chew on. A great listen well read.

Folk horror

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